Top pick · highest health
Fess
Powerful and easily deployable Enterprise Search Server.
DockerJava
Search Engines
Open source alternatives to Google Search
We track 3 open-source Google Search alternatives, of which 2 currently score 70 or above on Repoly's GitHub health scale and 3 ship a Docker image. Fess leads on health at 92/100 with 477 commits in the last 90 days; across all 3 projects you are choosing between AGPL-3.0, Apache-2.0, GPL-2.0.
updated Oct 2026 3 alternatives best health 92 ★ 44k combined 711 commits / 90d 3 with Docker
Top picks to replace Google Search
Showing 3 of 3 tools
All 3 Google Search alternatives, ranked by health
-
-
SearXNG
Internet metasearch engine which aggregates results from various search services and databases (Fork of Searx).
DockerPython -
Yacy
Peer based, decentralized search engine server.
DockerJavaK8S
Google Search alternatives compared
Fess edges SearXNG 92 to 73, and most of the difference is release recency: fess-15.9.0 from 15 days ago against no tagged release. SearXNG has the largest following at 39k stars, yet ranks #2 of 3, held back mostly by release recency (no tagged release).
The most recent release is Fess fess-15.9.0, published 15 days ago. SearXNG and Yacy publish no tagged releases, which costs up to 25 of the 100 points. None of the measured options scores under 40. By stack, Java (2) and Python (1) are the most common. Fess is permissively licensed; SearXNG and Yacy are copyleft.
| Tool | Health | Stars | Licence | Last commit | Docker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fess Steady at 92 since 11 Sep | 92 | 1.1k | Apache-2.0 | 2 days ago | Yes |
| SearXNG Steady at 73 since 11 Sep, no tagged release | 73 | 39k | AGPL-3.0 | today | Yes |
| Yacy Steady at 69 since 11 Sep, no tagged release | 69 | 4.1k | GPL-2.0 | 1 month ago | Yes |
Google Search alternatives: common questions
What is the most maintained open source alternative to Google Search?
Fess scores highest at 92/100, with 477 commits in the last 90 days, 1.1k stars on GitHub and its latest release (fess-15.9.0) published 15 days ago. It is also the most active by raw commit count.
Which Google Search alternatives use a permissive licence?
1 of 3 are permissively licensed (MIT, Apache, BSD or similar): Fess (Apache-2.0). 2 use copyleft licences such as GPL or AGPL, which require you to publish changes if you distribute a modified version.
Which Google Search alternatives run in Docker?
3 of 3 publish a Docker image or Compose file: Fess, SearXNG, Yacy. Docker support contributes 10 of the 100 available health points, because it is the clearest signal that self-hosting is a supported path rather than an afterthought.
Is Fess or SearXNG the better Google Search alternative?
On measured health Fess leads, 92 to 73. Fess has 477 commits in 90 days, 1.1k stars and fess-15.9.0 from 15 days ago; SearXNG has 201 commits in 90 days, 39k stars and no tagged release. SearXNG is ahead on stars, so it is the stronger pick if that is what you weigh most.
Are the Google Search alternatives still maintained?
2 of the 3 measured options score 70 or above. Every measured option had commits in the last 90 days. None scores under 40.
What languages are the Google Search alternatives written in?
Java: Fess and Yacy. Python: SearXNG. The stack matters if you plan to extend or patch the tool yourself.
